Truth, Justice, and the Goa'uld Way
by Medie Shanachie
Summary: Daniel and Jack travel to a dig site to visit an old friend of Daniel's and discover a Goa'uld...or do they?


_Disclaimer: Meghan belongs to me, as does the rest of her crew. Jack and Daniel and the SGC belong to the Powers that Be at MGM, SciFi, and Brad Wright and Jonathan Glassner and everyone else involved there. Thanks for 10 fantastic years, guys!_

There was a grin lighting the face of the woman striding towards them. When she was in hearing distance, she called out, "Rock boy!" There was no accusation in her tone, rather it held surprise and gladness, but Jack O'Neill still felt his body stiffen in anger since the word appeared to be directed towards his best friend.

Daniel's face was lighting at the greeting though and Jack was surprised to see a full on smile breaking across it. "Klutz," he called in response and there was genuine affection in his tone. The woman had reached them now and Daniel enfolded her in a hug.

She grasped her old friend tightly, as glad to see him as he obviously was to see her. "Who are you calling a klutz?" she demanded when he had released her and they stepped apart. Both of them were still grinning inanely at each other.

"I'm not the one that fell off the scaffolding," he reminded her.

She rubbed the back of her neck, smiling ruefully now. "It wasn't that far."

"Only far enough to scare the daylights out of me."

She shrugged now, obviously unconcerned about it. "Oh, well. I stick to underground digs now. Shorter distance to fall." She looked him over, pleased to see muscle added to the skinny form she remembered. She touched his hair, having to reach up quite a bit since she was head and shoulders shorter than him. "You cut your hair off."

"Yeah. It was easier this way. It kept getting in my eyes." He nodded at the ponytail sprouting from the back of her head. "Yours is longer."

"Too much of a hassle to go into town to cut it and I don't trust any of these bean heads with a knife." She motioned back at the camp. "Come on in and get comfortable. It got a tad hot today."

Jack frowned at her comment since it didn't seem to be above fifty-five degrees. He and Daniel both wore pants with their shirts but the woman was clad in shorts and a tee shirt. "I'm glad you were able to get away from whatever you were doing," she continued, speaking over her shoulder to them as they followed her across the grass. "I really need your help with this. What we found is so out of my realm."

"All right, hang on a minute," Jack's voice stopped both of them. With identical looks of incomprehension both turned around to face him. "Who the hell are you?"

She rubbed her neck again and Jack wondered if it was a nervous gesture. It sure seemed to be, especially when Daniel reached out as if it was a habit and stopped her. "Come out of the sun, Jack," he told his friend. "And we'll explain everything."

"Especially the scaffolding. I want to hear about the scaffolding." Jack agreed to his request.

The woman laughed and agreed. "Sure. Just come in out of the sun. It's a damn heat wave today."

They ducked into the tent. Jack, from experience, had been expecting it to be hot but it was pleasantly cool inside. Flashlights and camp lanterns lit the interior up as if it was day inside but didn't add any heat. "I don't understand why you think it's so hot," he commented as she unearthed three stools and hauled them over to a table. The interior greatly resembled Daniel's office with rocks, Daniel would call them artifacts, and books scattered everywhere and taking up every available surface including the ground. Just like Daniel's office there appeared to be some sort of organization but Jack was damned if he could figure out what.

"It hasn't been above twenty for weeks but all of a sudden it spiked today and we're dying. We just got accustomed to the cold and then this." She waved indication the tent. "One of the locals showed me how to cool the tent down. Apparently this is normal. So anyway…" She sank down on the stool, a grateful sigh escaping as she got off her aching feet.

Daniel raised an eyebrow at her expression of pure bliss. "Long days?"

"And short nights," she agreed. "I'm Doctor Meghan Weatherly. I run this dig or at least attempt to."

"Attempt to?" Jack questioned. "I'm Jack O'Neill. I gather you already know Daniel."

"Yeah. We've met." There was a tone in her voice that said this was something she'd said before. "We've had a spat of incidents. Nothing that would endanger anyone, just nuisances really. Locals not showing up or leaving in the middle of the day, tunnels collapsing, typical stuff." She waved it away. "Not really a big deal. And definitely not why you're, or actually Daniel, is here."

"Why am I here?" Daniel asked. "All I was told was it had to do with hieroglyphics."

"Yeah, well. My Ancient Egyptian's a little rusty. I haven't used it since the ah scaffolding incident." She leaned forward, an intense look in her hazel eyes. "We found a burial chamber."

"Uh. Isn't that the point?" Jack replied.

She shook her head. "Well yes in a way but the Ancient Celts didn't burry their dead wrapped like a mummy and with hieroglyphics decorating their tombs. Or in a sarcophagus."

Jack watched as Daniel's eyes lit up, becoming, if at all possible, more enthusiastic than the other doctor's. Jack shuddered at that familiar look in his friend's eyes and made a mental note to make sure Daniel ate something before he went anywhere. "You found an intact tomb that's decorated with Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics? When? Can I see it? Is it completely intact or are there pieces missing? Was there anything inside?"

She leaned back on her stool, laughing hysterically, than had to windmill her arms to keep herself upright and not fall over. "Oh goddess, Daniel! I am so glad you haven't changed." She composed herself slightly, although laughter still colored her words and bubbled over as she spoke. "To answer your questions. Yes. About four days ago. Yes, it's intact or at least I think it is since Egyptian tombs aren't my specialty. It has a mummy in a sarcophagus, burial jars, and funeral gifts as near as I can tell, especially considering my lack of knowledge." She seemed to know what Daniel was about to ask because she held up her hand as he opened his mouth to speak. "I can't take you in there yet. My site engineer is still trying to pump the water out." She frowned slightly, visualizing the grave site in her mind. "Everything inside was raised as if whoever buried the mummy was used to local weather patterns." She sighed. "It tends to rain. A lot."

"Rain?" Daniel gestured to the sunny day outside.

"This is the first clear day we've had all week. I'm hoping it holds up, at least until we can excavate the tomb."

Daniel nodded and returned to their prior subject, the tomb he had come to investigate. "There were definite hieroglyphics though?" he asked. "They weren't Ogham?"

She shook her head. "Ogham I know. I've been studying them long enough. These were definite Egyptian hieroglyphics. I remember enough to recognize them, even if I can't actually read them." She turned, rifling through a stack of papers and pictures on a near-by table. Apparently not finding what she wanted, she moved to another table, still talking, "I managed to take some pictures before we had to leave to begin the water removal. Ah-ha!" Triumphantly, she held up a sheaf of papers and pictures and handed them across to Daniel. "Have a look."

"So where did you meet Daniel?" Jack asked as she sat back down. Daniel had eagerly taken the pictures from her and was so absorbed with them that Jack knew it would take a missile to pull his attention away from them. Jack figured he was relatively safe questioning Meghan while Daniel was otherwise occupied.

She looked up from another set of papers she had picked up after handing Daniel the first set. "Undergrad in Chicago. He was the TA in one of my archeology classes. I went on a dig in Egypt that he was a part of also."

"The scaffolding incident," Jack guessed.

Meghan giggled, a particularly girlish sound. "Yes, the scaffolding incident. My one and only trip to Egypt."

"How did you fall off the scaffolding? It doesn't sound like something easy to do."

"Pure luck and stupidity really. Daniel took a group of us up to the top of some scaffolding to get a better look at the dig. Two of the guys started fooling around and showing off, shoving each other and the like. I got a little too close to the edge while we were trying to separate them. The one shoved the other, he backed into me and over the side I went." She shuddered. "I was lucky though. I got shoved hard enough that I missed hitting the scaffolding on the way down, it was a pretty small one to begin with, and there just happened to be a caravan of merchants at the bottom who had spread out their cargo of pillows and rugs. I landed in that. I still broke my arm in three places and my nose but it could have been a lot worse."

"What happened to the boys?"

"They got sent home. They failed their classes too. Since I broke my left arm and I could still write, I stayed. I followed Daniel around, taking notes and fetching stuff until the cast came off. I kept in touch with him for a while but eventually we just lost touch of each other." She set the papers down and studied him for a few minutes. "How do you know Daniel? You don't look like an archeologist or even a scholar. More military I would say."

"Just a friend who wanted some time away from it all," Jack lied easily. In truth, Hammond had refused to let Daniel go alone when the e-mail had arrived with the request for his help. Jack had decided to go, figuring even Daniel couldn't get into too much trouble with him in tow. They were still on Earth after all.

Jack was saved from anymore explanations when someone new ducked into the tent. The newcomer barely spared a glance at Jack or Daniel before turning to Meghan. "The chamber's clear, Meg. It's bigger than we thought and there's another chamber behind that has Ogham."

"That's great, Raoul. Send Kari in to start sketching. I want a complete record before we got in. We'll grab something to eat and meet you down there soon."

"I figured you'd want Kari to make some drawings first so I sent her down already. She was half done with the outer chamber when I came up to tell you it was clear."

With the news that the chamber was empty of water, Jack itched to get into the tomb and make sure the sarcophagus did not contain a Goa'uld. He knew if it did, they would have to shut down the dig and take over. He hoped Daniel's sway with this woman doctor would be enough to stop if from becoming a major incident if they were forced to shut down the dig.

Daniel looked up from the papers, apparently more in tune with the conversation than Jack had thought. "We can go to the tomb now?"

Meghan shook her head. "Soon, but not yet. I want my artist to get a record of both chambers before we go in. We'll be the first into the tomb though other than her. While you see what's in the sarcophagus, I'll read the Ogham. Maybe it's just some strange coincidence that there are hieroglyphics in the outer chamber." She stood, ducking out of the tent and calling over her shoulder, "We can grab sandwiches at the mess before we head down."

Jack looked at Daniel after she left. "Any clue if we're dealing with a snakehead or not?"

"The pictures aren't clear enough for me to make out a name but the markings are definitely hieroglyphics. All we can do is go look."

"Is she going to be a problem if we need to take over the dig?"

"She's not going to be happy but I'll see what I can do to smooth things over."

Jack clapped Daniel on the shoulder and grinned. "Always the diplomat, Danny boy. Let's go see your rocks."

"Artifacts, Jack. They're called artifacts," Daniel replied as they left the tent.

Jack laughed quietly. It was good to see Daniel relaxed. Privately Jack hoped this would be a false alarm and there wouldn't be a snake to hunt but lately their luck had not been that good. They ate quickly and then Meghan led the way to the tomb, clambering nimbly over the rocks and mounds that defined the site.

The tomb itself was carved into the side of a hill and sunk down into the ground. There wasn't a shaft to climb down though but a gentle slope allowed them to enter the tomb. Lights had been placed around the room, careful not to shine directly on the hieroglyphs painted onto the walls. Along one wall a shelf had been carved out and on it rested the five canopic jars that held the brain, liver, lungs, stomach, and intestines. In the center of the room was the golden sarcophagus that Jack and Daniel were most interested in. Meghan barely spared a glance for the sarcophagus and the other displays in the room but continued through a doorway into the second room. She trusted Daniel to watch his friend and not allow him to ruin the site. She needed to start translating the Ogham in the second room.

Jack fidgeted as Daniel bent over the sarcophagus, careful not to activate it and trigger it open. The gold box reminded him a little two much of the ones they had seen on Abydos and when Hathor had been on the base. He wasn't getting any closer to it than he had too. Daniel didn't seem too disturbed by it, he was muttering to himself as he passed his fingers over the etchings on it, translating rapidly to himself. After about five minutes of this, Jack began to get impatient. "Daniel," he called softly, trying not to be heard in the second room. He could hear the doctor muttering to herself and every once and a while someone else spoke so he assumed the artist was in there with her. When Daniel didn't look up from what he was doing, Jack tried again a little louder. "Daniel!"

Daniel looked up from the sarcophagus, annoyance clear on his face. "What, Jack?"

"Are you almost done?"

"No, Jack."

"Have you found anything out yet? Is there a snake in there?"

"I don't know, Jack. I'm still trying to read the rest of this. It really is fascinating though."

"What is?"

"Well, this symbol here is the hieroglyph for Ma'at who was the goddess of truth, cosmic order, and justice. Ma'at was important to the Pharaohs in that the concept she represented was fundamental to their way of life and rule. Pharaohs often portrayed themselves as "Beloved of Ma'at" and they upheld the order in the universe. She was also one of the final judges in the halls of Anubis when a soul passed to the underworld. I don't think she's the one in the sarcophagus though."

"And why don't you think the Matt person is inside?"

"Not Matt. Ma'at. I don't think she's inside because the writing here seems to be invoking her judgment." Daniel bent over the sarcophagus again and then suddenly straightened up again. "I think I know what's inside, Jack."

"Not who?"

"Well I can't be sure of the exact name but I'm pretty sure if there is someone still alive in there, he or she is a Tok'ra."

Jack stared at him in shock. "A Tok'ra? Daniel, are you absolutely sure?"

"Absolutely? No. I'm not absolutely sure but it seems to fit. The Goa'uld apparently captured this Tok'ra and then locked him or her inside the sarcophagus. The Goa'uld then wrote the hieroglyphs for Ma'at to call down judgment on the Tok'ra. I would say that whoever locked the Tok'ra inside was a lower level lackey and wanted his goddess to take care of the prisoner. For whatever reason, the sarcophagus was buried here and Ma'at never actually got around to dealing with the problem."

"Don't open the box, Daniel, until we have some SFs here." Jack pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and swore when he didn't have a signal. "I'm going aboveground to put a call out. Don't let your friend open it either. We're shutting this down long enough to get that box outta here."

"Jack, we can't just take the sarcophagus away from the site."

"We can and we will. I don't want any snake loose here, even one that might be on our side."

Jack went topside and within minutes had made arrangements for the group of SFs they had brought with them to pick up the sarcophagus and transport it back to Stargate Command. He would let Hammond handle contacting the Tok'ra. As far as he was concerned the box could stay closed until they took possession of it.

Meghan was arguing quietly with Daniel when he re-entered the tomb. From what Jack could hear, she wanted to open the sarcophagus there and not disturb the site. He smiled at her as he joined the two of them. "Doctor Weatherly, you can't open the sarcophagus. We've had reports of a virus escaping from ones that were opened and killing entire dig sites. We'll take possession of it and open it in a controlled environment."

Meghan frowned at him. "Why haven't I heard anything about this?"

"Classified, Doctor. We'll take the sarcophagus in just a few minutes and you can get back to playing with your rocks. I'd rather my men handle the transfer though so if you could clear yourself and your artist out it would be helpful."

"You can't kick me out of my own dig," she said indignantly.

Jack sighed and pulled his id out of his wallet. "I can and I am, Doctor. Colonel Jack O'Neill, Ma'am. I'll be taking command of this dig until we get the sarcophagus out. You and your people will remove yourselves from the tomb or I will have you removed."

Meghan turned to Daniel in shock. "Daniel, what the hell is going on here? The military? You're working with the military?"

"Meghan, come outside and we'll talk. Jack's doing the best he can. He does have to follow orders." Daniel's gentle voice calmed the angry doctor somewhat and she allowed herself to be led from the tomb.

Jack made his way into the second chamber and quickly rousted the young lady there. He trusted Daniel to get the two women as far away from the tomb as he could. Within minutes, he heard the sounds of the trucks and the SFs soon entered the tomb. He watched as they efficiently strapped the sarcophagus so that it couldn't open and loaded it onto a wheeled flat. Soon after they had entered, the box was on its way out of the tomb. Jack grabbed the sketch pad that the artist had been clutching when he shooed her out and pulled off the drawings of the outer chamber. Those he tucked into a folder and handed over to one of the SFs. The others he would return to the artist.

As quickly as they could, they gathered up the evidence of their presence and took their leave. Meghan was still angry when they left and threatening to contact the embassy about their conduct. Jack said she was welcome to do that. He knew nothing would come of her complaints. There was too much at stake.

_**Six Months Later**_

Jack watched from the control booth as Jacob Carter and another Tok'ra took possession of the sarcophagus. It had sat in a storage room for the past six months as Stargate Command waited for someone to come retrieve it. As he watched it disappear into the wormhole, he breathed a sigh of relief. It was out of their hands now. He just hoped that who or whatever was inside would not come back to haunt Earth. As the wormhole collapsed and the iris cycled closed, Jack turned away and left the control room. SG-1 had a mission in the morning he needed to prepare for. He put the sarcophagus out of his mind and turned his attention to the coming mission. That was his focus now; the coming mission and defending Earth from the Goa'ulds.


End file.
